The maid squad is too strong, what use is there for me, the Demon King?

After digesting that massive flow of information, Gray fully understood the fundamental purpose and inner logic behind everything the Goddess of Holy Light—or rather, the original hero—did after ascending to godhood.

He established the cycle of humans and demons, created the destined conflict between heroes and demon kings, tacitly allowed the existence of the demon cult, and regularly cleansed the Netherworld Prison... All these seemingly ruthless actions that manipulate the fate of all beings are driven by a core force that is surprisingly "simple" and "pragmatic":

To maintain the overall stability of the main plane, prevent the world from collapsing due to racial imbalance or the spread of negative emotions, and at the same time... make the management work of oneself as the master of the plane as "worry-free" and "automated" as possible.

While he understood, Gray felt no agreement whatsoever.

Looking at the empty temple, he seemed to see countless warriors who fought bloody battles on the battlefield between humans and demons for thousands of years, dying without ever knowing the truth.

Seeing those ordinary demons who were driven away and slaughtered because of the name "Demon King".

Seeing innocent lives destroyed and sacrificed under the influence of the demonic cult.

I saw the various Demon Kings and Heroes, bound by the shackles of fate, fighting each other.

The Holy Light Goddess, this former liberator, has undergone a complete transformation in her perspective and mindset after ascending to the divine throne and gaining near-eternal life and absolute power.

To Him, the beings in the Lord's plane may no longer be fellow human beings who need to be saved and protected, but rather a group of plants and trees that need to be "managed" and "pruned" to maintain the "garden" cleanliness and beauty, or even "pests" that need to be cleaned up regularly.

Individual joys and sorrows, and the suffering of ethnic groups, become insignificant in the face of His long divine life and the grand goal of "maintaining stability," and are even "necessary losses" that can be calculated and accepted.

He became indifferent, calculating, and... how similar in essence to the demon king he once rebelled against, who viewed all living beings as worthless!

All of this is to maintain a certain "order" (the Demon King's ruling order vs. His plane's stable order).

They all view other living beings as tools or costs to achieve their goals.

They all stand aloof and ignore the suffering of individuals at the bottom of society.

"The dragon slayer...does he ultimately become the dragon himself...?"

Gray gazed at the spot where the Goddess of Holy Light had vanished, muttering to himself with a complex expression in his eyes.

This old proverb seems so apt and ironic at this moment.

The brave girl who once slayed the dragon for freedom and liberation has gradually grown scales over the long years and with absolute power, and now resides in a new "dragon's nest" forged from bones and rules.

However, Gray also knew clearly that the Goddess of Light was not purely "evil" in the traditional sense.

Her initial intentions may have been sincere (seeking a place to live and maintaining world stability). Although her methods were ruthless, objectively speaking, she did "maintain" the fragile balance of the main plane for tens of thousands of years on a distorted level, preventing more complete destruction (such as the plane collapse caused by genocide, or the unknown terror born from the loss of control of negative emotions).

She was once a hero, a great figure who changed the world order.

But time and power eventually corrupted her.

"It's pathetic, and lamentable." Gray finally shook his head, suppressing this complex feeling.

Understanding her past and motives does not mean forgiving her actions, much less agreeing with her path.

The path she chose, which sacrificed countless individuals to maintain a cold "stability," had come to an end and was terminated by Gray himself.

Now, it's time to choose a new path.

A path that may be more difficult and uncertain, but at least... no longer treats all living beings as pawns and costs.

Seeing the figure of the Holy Light Goddess completely dissipate in the destructive light, Philippa's heart clenched, then she was overwhelmed by a huge sense of unreality and relief.

She practically ran to Gray's side, ignoring the dust and blood on him, and clung tightly to him, tilting her small face up to ask anxiously, "Gray! Are...are you alright? Goddess...is she really alright...?"

Gray gently patted her back, feeling her body tremble slightly. His voice was tired, but unusually steady: "Yes, it's resolved. This time... it's really resolved."

Philippa breathed a sigh of relief, but then another more practical question, one that concerned their future, came to mind.

She hesitated for a moment, then asked the question cautiously, "Then...then the issue between us, the Demon King and the Hero...?" For her, Gray's safety was always the top priority, and the chasm between their identities was the next most pressing and agonizing issue.

“It’s not completely resolved yet,” Gray said candidly, but there was no worry in his eyes, only a calm acceptance of the situation. “But the most intractable, root cause of the problem has been eliminated. The rest… will be much simpler to handle.”

“Simple?” Philippa blinked in confusion, not understanding what could be considered “simple” after killing a god.

Gray didn't answer directly, but instead extended his hand, palm up.

An invisible wave of magical energy spread out, slowly lifting up the golden fragments of rules that remained where the Holy Goddess of Light had vanished—fragments that seemed to have been condensed from the purest source of light—and gathering them above his palm, forming a faintly glowing ball of light.

The ball of light exuded a familiar yet strange aura. Philippa could feel the power within her that had long been stripped away, and it seemed to resonate faintly with it.

"This is the core that sustains the existence of the 'Hero'—the fragments of the rules that govern the Hero's legacy," Gray explained.

"The cycle of humans and demons is already a highly 'automated' system. Even if we destroy the Holy Goddess who created and maintains it, this system will not stop operating immediately."

Given the right conditions (such as the convergence of demonic energy giving rise to a new demon king), it could still be triggered, giving birth to a new 'hero'.

Seeing Philippa's surprised yet anxious expression, he continued, "But the good news is that the guy who periodically 'winds up' the system and forcibly assigns 'operators' (heroes) is gone. So, what we need to do now is to start from within the system and eliminate this 'hero' part."

He held the golden ball of light and handed it to Philippa.

"This power originally stemmed from your stripped identity as a 'hero,' and now it is being returned to its rightful owner. However, it's not as simple as just taking it back."

Gray's eyes turned serious: "You need to find a way to completely refine, absorb, and fix this fragment of rules, and completely transform it into a part of your own power, binding it to your soul, so that it is no longer an external program that can be independently inherited and automatically called by the 'system'."

“As long as you succeed in doing this,” Gray said with certainty, “the ‘hero’s legacy’ module will be permanently removed from the loop system and formatted.”

From now on, there will be no more 'heroes' who are born automatically in the world.

Even if another Demon King is born in the future, there will be no more destined 'heroes' forced to fight against him.

Philippa only half understood what he was saying. She stared blankly at the golden fragments that emitted a soft light in front of her, then looked at Gray, and finally understood his plan completely.

This is not only about returning power, but also about a heavy responsibility and a crucial "operation"—that she, the last "hero," will personally end the fabricated destiny of the "hero" identity!

She took a deep breath, her eyes hardening, and nodded firmly: "I understand! I will definitely do it!"

She reached out, cautiously yet resolutely, to touch the golden light that represented destiny and shackles, yet also contained hope and the future.